Silas wttherell



(No Model.)

S. WITHERELL.

HOUSE DOUE LETTER BOX.

No. 472,007. Patented Mar. 29, 1892.

NITED STATES PATENT- OFFICE,

SILAS WI'IHERELL, OF FORT MADISON, IOIVA, ASSIGNOR TO LOIS O. HINZE,`

OF SAME PLACE.

HOUSE-DOOR LETTER-BOX.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 472,007, dated March 29, 1892.

Application filed May l, 1891. Serial No. 391,201. (No model.)

To ali whom it may con/cern:

Be it known that I, SILAs WITHERELL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Fort Madison, in the county of Lee and State of Iowa, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in House Letter-Boxes; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the annexed drawings,

1o making a partof this specification, and to the letters of reference marked thereon.

This invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in house letter-boxes; and it has for its objects, among others, to

provide a letter-box of this character which shall be cheap and neat in appearance, which shall protect the contents against rain, snow, and dust, simple in its manner of operation, provided with an attachment for the recepzo tion of papers and packages too large to be placed in the box, which shall disclose the presence of mail-matter without being opened, which shall mar the door but little, and which can be readily applied to a door in such a man- 2 5 ner as to furnish reasonable security against removal of the letters or of the box by m'aliciously-inclined persons.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will hereinafter appear, and the novel 5o features thereof will be specifically defined by the appended claims.

The invention is clearly illustrated in the accompanying drawings, which, with the letters of reference marked thereon, form a part of this specication, and in whieh- .y

Figure 1 is a perspective view of my improved house letter-box, shown applied to a door with the lid and movable receptacle shown open. Fig. 2 isacentral vertical cross- 40 section through the same, with the said parts closed.

Like letters of reference indicate like parts 'in both of the views.

Referring now to the details of the drawings by letter, A designates a portion of a door or any other suitable support to which the box is to be affixed.

The box B is formed of any suitable material and of the required size, being preferably rectangular in shape, as shown, and itis provided with a fixed bottom and a hinged top O. This top is pivoted upon the rod D, which is secured at its ends in the ears b of the side walls of the box, as shown, the lid or cover having asurrounding depending fiange c, which. embraces the upper end of the box to make a water-tight joint, the side walls of the box being cut away at the rear to form a space d, in which the rear portion of this flange works, as seen best in Fig. 2, so as to 6o allow the cover to iiy open when released into the position in which it is shown in Fig. l. A spring E is arranged around the pivot-rod within the box with one end acting upon the inner face of the cover, as shown in Fig. l, and the other end bearing against the inwardly and forwardly inclined ledge F, as seen in the same figure, the said ledge being provided to prevent removal of the contents of the box, an oppositely-inclined ledge G be- 7o in g provided for a like purpose, as seen best in Fig. 2, the mail being designed to be introduced through the openingebetween these ledges, as seenin Fig. 2.

A suitable spring-catch H is provided within the box for the purpose of holding the cover closed, the said catch being actuated to release the cover by means of a push-button I, at the front of the box, acting upon the said catch, as seen in Fig. 2. 8o

In the front wall of the box I provide a transparent opening f, through which it may be readily discerned whether or not there is any mail in the box.

J are lugs cast upon the front wall of the box and designed to receive and hold between them a door-plate or other desired analogous device.

At the bottom of the front Wall of the box I provide a means for holding newspapers 9o and the like. It consists of apiece of Wire K, having its ends secured to the box in any suitable manner, and formed near the said connection with coils g, the wire being bent at its center and curved between its bend and the connection with the box, as shown, so that it will readily yield to the insertion of packages and yet rmly hold them in place.

The box is provided with a side opening fi, in which is fitted the movable portion of the roo cealed from view, and the manner of secur-` ing the box in place is thus hidden from View, whereby the box cannot be removed from the door by malioiously-inclined persons.

L is the movable part of the box. It is pivoted at its lower outer corner on a suitable pivot-pin 7c, held in the side walls of the` box proper, as shown in Fig. l.

The bottom of this movable portion may form the bottom l of the box, or the box may have a fixed bottom in addition thereto, as above described. The sides of this movable portion or door are at an angle to its front wall, as seen in Fig. l l, and the front wall is provided with a suit-.1 able knob or handle Z, by which it may bei opened and closed.

proper.

It is designed `to set in; flush with the coincident portions of the box This movable portion of the box is provided at its inner lower end with an inclined plate or partial bottom M, which serves 3 to throw the mail outward when the movable portion is opened.

The operation will be readily understood from the foregoing description when taken in connection with the annexed drawings, and a detailed description thereof is not deemed necessary.

The box can be nsed either for collection or delivery.

In order to lock the movable portion from the inside of the house, I Vprovide a pin N, movable in the door and adapted to engage a hole m in the side of the movable portion, as seen in both views. When this pinis pushed in, it locks the movable portion. When pulled out sutliciently to disengage the said hole, the

movable portion is free to be opened.

What I claim as new is l. A house letter-box consisting of the box proper having spring-actuated pivoted cover with flange and the side walls of the box cnt away at the rear to forma space for the working of the said flange, and a forwardly-inclined ledge and a rearwardly-inclined ledge at the top of the front of the box, as set forth.

2. A house letter-box consisting of the box proper having spring-actuated pivoted cover with front and rear flanges and the side walls of the box cut away at the rear to form a space for the working of the rear flange, a forwardly-inclined ledge and `a rearwardlyinclined ledge at the top of the box, and a movable part L, having sides and front and pivoted at the lower outer corner and having at its inner lower end an inclined plate, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

In testimony that I claim the above I have hereunto subscribed my name in the presence of two witnesses.

SlIlAS WI'llIEI-tELL. Witnesses:

Il. W. Doni), T. J. Donn. 

